27 Sept 2020
Revisiting the Harz – A Little Autumn Tour
I had planned a spring journey to Lithuania and Latvia that fell victim to Corona, though I hope I can do it some other time. But with traveling within Germany being rather safe now, I decided to sneak in a little autumn tour and went to one of my favourite destinations for a few days – visiting Goslar and Quedlinburg in the Harz, including some hiking. I've visited both towns before, but during day trips that didn't leave me as much time – this time I got a lot of photos, so I'll be able to write virtual town tours that got some real illustrations. For now, let's have a brief look in the style of my Travel Booty posts.
Goslar, seen from the Rammelsberg mountain
The Harz mountain range is rich in silver and ore and thus has been cultivated since the Bronze Age. Mining became important in the Middle Ages, settlements developed in the valleys, cattle was sent grazing on the slopes and trees were used – and later replanted – for building, mining and firewood. The Harz today is a cultural landscape, but with parts that remain but little altered, or are allowed to reset to their natural state; those now encompass the Harz National Park.
Goslar, the palatine castle
Let's start with a well known building that more or less represents Goslar: The iconic palatine castle is a 19th century reconstruction based on the remains of the 11th century building, one of the main seats of the Salian emperors. They traveled around in their realm, but the main feasts like Easter, Christmas and such were usually celebrated in prominent palatine castles. The buildings had undergone various uses after the palace was no longer needed as royal seat after 1252, and was somewhat worse for the wear.
Goslar, the market square
That photo of the market square was taken out of the window of my hotel room. In some places in the Harz, local slate shingles are not only used for roofing, but to protect the walls against the harsh climate as well.
The burghers of Goslar benefitted from the rich silver mines in the Rammelsberg mountain, and the town thrived, as the fine houses in the square demonstrate. It became a free Imperial city in 1290 and later joined the Hanseatic League. Goslar lost its independence only in the 16th century.
Goslar, old houses at the Abzucht brook
Goslar declined in the 18th century, several fires destroyed parts the town. But enough of the Mediaeval and Early Modern buildings remained, and the increasing interest of the Hohenzollern emperors in old architecture led to a restoration boom in the mid- to late 19th century. Today, the old town and palatine castle hold UNESCO World Heritage status.
Goslar, more pretty half timbered houses
The Rammelsberg has not only offered an important silver mine for centuries (mining has been discontinued only in 1988 because it became unprofitable), but also some nice hiking trails that offer views towards Goslar in the parts were the forest opens up to hillside grazings.
The Maltermeister Tower
The Maltermeister Tower on the Rammelsberg was built some time before 1548 to protect the mines. It was also used as belfry for a bell to warn the miners and the town of approaching danger and to signal the begin of a shift. It was the quarter of the Maltermeister, the administrator of the wood used for the mines; that wood was measured in bushels, German Malter.
The Herzberg Pond
On my way back, I passed the Herzberg Pond, a lovely spot of sparkling water among verdant hills. The pond is not natural, but considerably old; it was created as part of the Upper Harz Water Regale (Oberharzer Wasserregal) in 1561 by an earth and grass dam. It has been used as woodland swimming pool since 1926, after the mining technology no longer needed the water wheels. Pity I didn't bring s swimsuit; the water looked really cool and inviting.
Hiking trail on the Rammelsberg
The Upper Harz Water Regale is a system of resevoirs, dams and ditches that dates back to the Middle Ages. Water was needed to drive the water wheels in the mines which pumped up the groundwater in the deeper mines – fighting water with water. The Harz water regale is one of the largest mining water systems in the world. It is a cultural monument since 1978. Today, the ponds and reservoirs are used for reecreational purposes.
Quedlinburg, view to the chapter church and the palace
Another view from my hotel room, this time in Quedlinburg. The scaffolding on the cathedral has wandered a bit – last time I was there it covered the towers – but it is still the same one; repairs will continue until 2025 or so, I was told. Well, two visits still provided me with some photos of the parts not scaffolded in and closed to the public.
Quedlinburg, view from the palace garden to the old town
Quedlinburg, another town listed as UNESCO World Heritage, is first mentioned in a charte by Heinrich I (the Fowler) dating from 922, as location of one of the many palatine castles spread across Germany during the Middle Ages and often used during the Easter celebrations. Heinrich I and several of his successors were entombed in Quedlinburg.
Quedlinburg, old houses with the chapter church and palace in the background
Heinrich's widow Queen Mathilde obtained a grant from her son, Otto I, to establish a canoness chapter which she led for 30 years. In 994, Otto III granted the chapter the right of market, mint and tolls and thus laid the foundation for the development of the town. The town experienced an economical rise in the following centuries and gained more independence from the abbess of the chapter, the nominal lady of the town. In 1426, Quedlinburg joined the Hanseatic League.
Quedlinburg, the town hall
During that time, the burghers began to build those beautiful half timbered houses some of which have survived and been restored. The representative town hall was built in 1310; in 1616 a Renaissance portal was added, and there are later changes from the 19th century that affect mostly the interior.
Quedlinburg, Finkenherd Square
Luckily, the value of the historical substance of Quedlinburg's old town was reocgnised during GDR time (too often, old houses were dismantled and replaced with modern buildings instead) and specialists from Poland were called in to restore the half-timbered buildings. Quedlinburg became an East German show piece for state visitors.
St.Wiperti, the crypt
St.Wiperti is a fine example of the Romanesque style. Heinrich I had the church erected on the foundations of an even older one. The exact relationship between the chapter church on the castle hill and St.Wiperti are still discussed; obviously the Ottonian and Salian emperors used both during their sojourns in Quedlinburg. But while the chapter church was occupied by ladies, St.Wiperti was a Premonsterian monastery for a time, and might also have been used by the royal clerical staff.
Hiking trail in the Bode Valley
Since the Bode Valley is not far from Quedlinburg, I took the chance to have another hike in one of my favourite landscapes. I've bloogged about the valley here. This time I went further up the slope and walked to the Bodekessel, a little waterfall that washed out a cave in the cliffs (though the view down is so overgrown with shrubs that I could not catch a decent photo). The way consists of stones and small boulders, which makes hiking along that path 'interesting'.
The Bodekessel
I had some time left upon return to Thale, so I decided to take the cabin lift to the Witches' Dance Floor, one of the many cliff tops surrounding the valley. Well, I'm not good with heights to begin with and didn't count on the wind that made the tiny cabin sway like a drunken sailor, but I survived. Better than a broomstick, anyway. The way down was less stressful and I could enjoy the view of the valley beneath a bit more.
View from the Witches' Dance Floor
The Hexentanzplatz is a granite plateau overlooking the Bode Valley and several other cliffs. The site has been a popular tourist spot since the late 19th century (with a theatre, a zoo, an overpriced restaurant etc.), though it had been in use before, for example as a pagan cult site prior to the Christianisation of the Saxon tribes. At at this time of the year and with the Chinese tourist groups missing, it wasn't so crowded. The view was definitely worth the visit (and ride in the cabin lift).
The Bode river
On another note, Blogger has totally changed its backend layout, supposedly 'improving' it, but it's a mess more difficult to use than before, including the way the HTML code from my files transfers to the site. Had to adjust several bits of code to this post. Why can't those programmers leave working stuff alone. ¶ September 27, 2020
I had planned a spring journey to Lithuania and Latvia that fell victim to Corona, though I hope I can do it some other time. But with traveling within Germany being rather safe now, I decided to sneak in a little autumn tour and went to one of my favourite destinations for a few days – visiting Goslar and Quedlinburg in the Harz, including some hiking. I've visited both towns before, but during day trips that didn't leave me as much time – this time I got a lot of photos, so I'll be able to write virtual town tours that got some real illustrations. For now, let's have a brief look in the style of my Travel Booty posts.
The Harz mountain range is rich in silver and ore and thus has been cultivated since the Bronze Age. Mining became important in the Middle Ages, settlements developed in the valleys, cattle was sent grazing on the slopes and trees were used – and later replanted – for building, mining and firewood. The Harz today is a cultural landscape, but with parts that remain but little altered, or are allowed to reset to their natural state; those now encompass the Harz National Park.
Let's start with a well known building that more or less represents Goslar: The iconic palatine castle is a 19th century reconstruction based on the remains of the 11th century building, one of the main seats of the Salian emperors. They traveled around in their realm, but the main feasts like Easter, Christmas and such were usually celebrated in prominent palatine castles. The buildings had undergone various uses after the palace was no longer needed as royal seat after 1252, and was somewhat worse for the wear.
That photo of the market square was taken out of the window of my hotel room. In some places in the Harz, local slate shingles are not only used for roofing, but to protect the walls against the harsh climate as well.
The burghers of Goslar benefitted from the rich silver mines in the Rammelsberg mountain, and the town thrived, as the fine houses in the square demonstrate. It became a free Imperial city in 1290 and later joined the Hanseatic League. Goslar lost its independence only in the 16th century.
Goslar declined in the 18th century, several fires destroyed parts the town. But enough of the Mediaeval and Early Modern buildings remained, and the increasing interest of the Hohenzollern emperors in old architecture led to a restoration boom in the mid- to late 19th century. Today, the old town and palatine castle hold UNESCO World Heritage status.
The Rammelsberg has not only offered an important silver mine for centuries (mining has been discontinued only in 1988 because it became unprofitable), but also some nice hiking trails that offer views towards Goslar in the parts were the forest opens up to hillside grazings.
The Maltermeister Tower on the Rammelsberg was built some time before 1548 to protect the mines. It was also used as belfry for a bell to warn the miners and the town of approaching danger and to signal the begin of a shift. It was the quarter of the Maltermeister, the administrator of the wood used for the mines; that wood was measured in bushels, German Malter.
On my way back, I passed the Herzberg Pond, a lovely spot of sparkling water among verdant hills. The pond is not natural, but considerably old; it was created as part of the Upper Harz Water Regale (Oberharzer Wasserregal) in 1561 by an earth and grass dam. It has been used as woodland swimming pool since 1926, after the mining technology no longer needed the water wheels. Pity I didn't bring s swimsuit; the water looked really cool and inviting.
The Upper Harz Water Regale is a system of resevoirs, dams and ditches that dates back to the Middle Ages. Water was needed to drive the water wheels in the mines which pumped up the groundwater in the deeper mines – fighting water with water. The Harz water regale is one of the largest mining water systems in the world. It is a cultural monument since 1978. Today, the ponds and reservoirs are used for reecreational purposes.
Another view from my hotel room, this time in Quedlinburg. The scaffolding on the cathedral has wandered a bit – last time I was there it covered the towers – but it is still the same one; repairs will continue until 2025 or so, I was told. Well, two visits still provided me with some photos of the parts not scaffolded in and closed to the public.
Quedlinburg, another town listed as UNESCO World Heritage, is first mentioned in a charte by Heinrich I (the Fowler) dating from 922, as location of one of the many palatine castles spread across Germany during the Middle Ages and often used during the Easter celebrations. Heinrich I and several of his successors were entombed in Quedlinburg.
Heinrich's widow Queen Mathilde obtained a grant from her son, Otto I, to establish a canoness chapter which she led for 30 years. In 994, Otto III granted the chapter the right of market, mint and tolls and thus laid the foundation for the development of the town. The town experienced an economical rise in the following centuries and gained more independence from the abbess of the chapter, the nominal lady of the town. In 1426, Quedlinburg joined the Hanseatic League.
During that time, the burghers began to build those beautiful half timbered houses some of which have survived and been restored. The representative town hall was built in 1310; in 1616 a Renaissance portal was added, and there are later changes from the 19th century that affect mostly the interior.
Luckily, the value of the historical substance of Quedlinburg's old town was reocgnised during GDR time (too often, old houses were dismantled and replaced with modern buildings instead) and specialists from Poland were called in to restore the half-timbered buildings. Quedlinburg became an East German show piece for state visitors.
St.Wiperti is a fine example of the Romanesque style. Heinrich I had the church erected on the foundations of an even older one. The exact relationship between the chapter church on the castle hill and St.Wiperti are still discussed; obviously the Ottonian and Salian emperors used both during their sojourns in Quedlinburg. But while the chapter church was occupied by ladies, St.Wiperti was a Premonsterian monastery for a time, and might also have been used by the royal clerical staff.
Since the Bode Valley is not far from Quedlinburg, I took the chance to have another hike in one of my favourite landscapes. I've bloogged about the valley here. This time I went further up the slope and walked to the Bodekessel, a little waterfall that washed out a cave in the cliffs (though the view down is so overgrown with shrubs that I could not catch a decent photo). The way consists of stones and small boulders, which makes hiking along that path 'interesting'.
I had some time left upon return to Thale, so I decided to take the cabin lift to the Witches' Dance Floor, one of the many cliff tops surrounding the valley. Well, I'm not good with heights to begin with and didn't count on the wind that made the tiny cabin sway like a drunken sailor, but I survived. Better than a broomstick, anyway. The way down was less stressful and I could enjoy the view of the valley beneath a bit more.
The Hexentanzplatz is a granite plateau overlooking the Bode Valley and several other cliffs. The site has been a popular tourist spot since the late 19th century (with a theatre, a zoo, an overpriced restaurant etc.), though it had been in use before, for example as a pagan cult site prior to the Christianisation of the Saxon tribes. At at this time of the year and with the Chinese tourist groups missing, it wasn't so crowded. The view was definitely worth the visit (and ride in the cabin lift).
On another note, Blogger has totally changed its backend layout, supposedly 'improving' it, but it's a mess more difficult to use than before, including the way the HTML code from my files transfers to the site. Had to adjust several bits of code to this post. Why can't those programmers leave working stuff alone. ¶ September 27, 2020
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